FAUNA · Ochre & Ash | BLACK 2LP

Black double vinyl in gatefold sleeve with 4-page insert, padded inner sleeves, and protection sleeve.

Background information about 'Ochre & Ash'

"Ochre & Ash" marks the fourth full-length offering from Cascadian black metal shamans Fauna, and what a journey it promises to be. This isn't just another album - it's a ritualistic descent into the primordial depths of human consciousness, conceived as a shamanic underworld journey complete with ritual death, harrowing passage through unknown realms, and eventual rebirth. The title itself speaks to ancient human creativity, referencing the ochre and ash pigments used by our ancestors to create cave paintings, with the album cover featuring imagery from Argentina's Cueva de las Manos where hand stencils date back to 7,300 BC.

While "Ochre & Ash" appears to contain six tracks on the surface, it's actually structured as one cohesive piece divided into three main "songs" interspersed with ambient interludes. Fauna have always been animist ministers guiding listeners back to our species' origins, to an age of hunters and gatherers and archaic spirituality, and this latest work continues that mission with black metal fury that echoes ancient humans assembling by torchlight in dark caves. Since forming in Olympia, Washington in 2004, Fauna have become integral to the Cascadian black metal movement alongside legends like Agalloch and Wolves in the Throne Room.

For fans of:
Agalloch, Wolves in the Throne Room, Ash Borer, Fell Voices, and Panopticon.

Track listing

LP 1:
A1. A Conjuring
A2. Nature & Madness
B3. Femoral Sun
B4. Labyrinths

LP 2:
C5. Mockery
C6. Eternal Return I
D7. Eternal Return II

Manufacturer: ProMedia GmbH, Im Gartenfeld 1, 54516 Flußbach, Germany, Contact: spkr.media